Las Casitas Del Colca

Located in the formerly rustic Parador del Colca, the original seven-room lodge now houses Las Casitas' handsome reception, bar, and restaurant. Guests stay in 20 new cottages - all with private patios and heated plunge pools (great for stargazing on cold nights) - among ponds, stables, gardens, and a small lawn where baby alpacas are bottle-fed by staff and guests. (Alpaca, a common entrée in Peru, is on the menu here, but the meat is tougher than you'd wish.) The hotel excels at thoughtful details, like field guides with pop-up maps of the region, and red-clay flagons of aloe vera and zinc-oxide sunblock - at 10,700 feet, skin burns at the speed of light. Turndown service leaves a sheep-encased hot water bottle peeking from behind a pillow and lit candles ringing the bathtub. The hotel also offers an exquisite on-site spa (try the signature high altitiude Altu massage), trips to Cruz del Condor to see the world's largest birds rise on thermals from the canyon below, hikes, horseback rides, and volunteering at a church in town.